Accra, Ghana – Thursday, 11 October 2018 Today, afb Ghana recognised and celebrated their one-millionth Qwikloan customer at the Labadi Beach Hotel, less than a year after disbursing their first mobile money Qwikloan, in partnership with MTN Ghana. Letshego’s Group CEO, Smit Crouse, flew in to attend the customer celebration, noting afb Ghana’s success since the subsidiary was acquired by the Letshego Group in January 2017. Crouse leveraged the event to announce afb’s plans to rebrand to Letshego’s blue and yellow over the next 6 months period, leveraging the established brand’s reputation and 20 year heritage across the continent.

Arnold Parker, afb Ghana’s Country CEO commented, “Ghana was first market in Letshego’s footprint to pilot and launch Qwikloan - the fact that we are standing here today, celebrating our millionth Qwikloan customer less than a year after launch, is testament to a successful solution and partnership that fits the needs of our people.”

Qwikloan is an easy access, short term, small scale loan, available via MTN Ghana’s mobile money platform. Qwikloan supports afb’s commitment to increasing financial inclusion by enabling customers to develop their own credit records in managing their Qwikloans responsibly. Customers who demonstrate responsible loan repayments, unlock access to more capital, ultimately enabling Ghanaians to fund more productive and sustainable ventures.

Eli Hini, General Manager, Mobile Financial Services at MTN Ghana added, “The best thing about the Qwikloan offering is that it is fast, simple and convenient, enabling customers to receive and repay their loans in seconds, all through MTN Ghana mobile money.”

Since launching in November last year, the innovative partnership has issued more than 5 million Qwikloans, valued at over GHS600million. Qwikloan is the first of its kind in the Ghanaian market, and comprises a 30-day micro or small loan ranging from GHS25 to GHS1,000, depending on how customers manage their loans and repayments.

Visiting from Letshego Group’s Headquarters in Botswana, Letshego’s recently appointed Group CEO added, “afb Ghana is Letshego’s most recent acquisition within the Letshego footprint, and is already contributing positive value and profits to the Group. Qwikloans is just one of the many solutions afb offers in Ghana, and stands to provide a valuable source of best practice for our other markets given its success and innovative delivery. I would like to thank our customers for supporting afb Ghana, and invite them to continue with us on this exciting growth journey as we rebrand to Letshego.”

To deliver the QWIKLOAN solution, afb Ghana and MTN Ghana are using JUMO, the largest and fastest growing technology platform for operating inclusive mobile financial services marketplaces. This strategic partnership aims to include more Ghanaians into the formal financial services sector, whilst also empowering micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) with access to valuable growth capital.

About MTN Ghana
MTN Ghana is the market leader in the increasingly competitive mobile telecommunications industry in Ghana, offering subscribers a range of exciting options under Pay Monthly and Pay As You Go Services. The company has committed itself to delivering reliable and innovative services that provide value for subscribers in Ghana’s telecommunications market. Since its entry into Ghana in 2006, MTN has continuously invested in expanding and modernizing its network in order to offer superior services to a broad expanse of the nation. Total network investments from 2006-2016 are about US$3.472 billion. MTN has the widest network coverage across Ghana. With the recent commercial launch of 4G LTE services, MTN became the only mobile operator providing 4G services in all regional capitals and large cities. The company has also built three modern switch and data centres to deliver stable, reliable, efficient and robust Telecom and Data Services to customers.

About JUMO
JUMO Tanzania Services Company Ltd. is a subsidiary of JUMO, an emerging markets technology company with operations across Africa and Asia. The JUMO platform connects small businesses and individuals with real-time access to digital financial services, such as savings and loans. The company works with partners such as mobile network operators and banks to reach underserved segments and achieve a massive transformative purpose: financial inclusion across the world. JUMO has served over 9 million customers to date. For more visit www.jumo.world

About Letshego Ghana
Letshego Ghana is licensed by the Central Bank of Ghana as a Non-Bank Financial Institution. It is a subsidiary of Letshego Holdings Limited (LHL), the inclusive finance focused Group headquartered in Gaborone, Botswana and listed on the Botswana Stock Exchange in 2002.

Since its launch in 2010, afb Ghana has grown to service over 1,000,000 customers through a countrywide network of more than 23 customer access points through an end-to-end automated service delivery model. The company’s strategy is to deliver responsible lending services by leveraging technology to drive access, simplicity and customer satisfaction. afb Ghana offers innovative consumer finance solutions to employees of the Ghana Government, parastatals and reputable private organisations. It is committed to responsible lending and our simple and appropriate solutions include consumer loans, direct loans, SmartCash and Qwikloans to informal or market traders.For more info visit www.letshego.com/ghana

About Letshego Group
The Letshego Group is a proudly African multinational organisation, headquartered and listed in Botswana and focused on delivering inclusive finance solutions to underserved populations across 11 Sub Saharan Markets.

With a staff compliment of over 3,000 – including both direct and indirect sales agents - and more than four hundred thousand customers, Letshego is synonymous with leveraging innovation and technology to improve the lives of individuals who have limited access to traditional financial services.

In 2018, Letshego celebrates 20 years of supporting regional communities, with strong progress towards the Group’s ambition to be Africa’s leading inclusive finance organisation. For more info visit www.letshego.com